04/18/2012

It breaks my heart a little bit to think about the rather asinine, incomprehensible choices people sometimes make. Police pursuits aren’t exactly unheard of here in Los Angeles, but they really should be. It’s one thing to think you can outrun another car, but when a helicopter gets involved, the little chase over is effectively over. The LAPD always has a presence in the skies, so any manhunt or pursuit can be followed from a much different perspective in a matter of minutes.

The latest police chase making headlines took place last week north of L.A. – in Woodland Hills – which resulted in the death of 19-year-old motorist Abdul Arian. Police had attempted to pull Arian over for reckless driving. He then fled, and a police chase ensued. When his car finally came to a stop, Arian exited the vehicle and ran, backpedaling and putting both hands up in front of him – in the same “aggressive shooting stance” manner the LAPD proclaims. Ultimately, the police fired 120 bullets at the driver, who turned out to be unarmed. Arian’s family is now suing the Los Angeles Police Department for $120 million.

News footage of the pursuit can be found online and, if the family were to watch it, they would see the young man trying to outrun the police and witness the aggressive actions he took just before he was gunned down. There is no need to seek “justice” in this case because there is nothing that needs justified. Ignorance IS NOT bliss and truth will ultimately prevail.

It really is a shame that this young man’s family has to deal with such an aftermath. No doubt, for them, there are more questions than answers, and some of the usual, defensive positions are being taken: “He didn’t even own a gun” and “The police responded with excessive force.” To address the latter notion, the police did what they had to do to eliminate a threat. Whether it was perceived or real in this case doesn’t matter because Arian clearly made it look as though he was brandishing a firearm. There is no simply no reason to hold a cell phone – or anything – and point it at officers who are already under duress.

The fact that there is even a lawsuit seems to demonstrate that some people will do anything for money. Quite frankly, the family should be embarrassed to look past most of the facts in this case and simply say “The police killed my boy, and they didn’t have to.” But the point is, the police had to protect themselves from a lunatic that called 911 during a car chase and said “If they (the police) pull their guns, I’m gonna have to pull my gun out on them.”